Ah, January. Ye of resolutions, leftover holiday treats, the last scraps of Christmas cheer lingering like unwanted party guests. I love a chance for a fresh start and some navel-gazing, which probably explains why I've always loved the anticipatory countdowns and the flip of the page to January. I'm not one for making hard and fast resolutions that I burn out on by mid-January. I am one for thinking about the month and year ahead and working on all the things I already knew I needed to work on.

2016 was a big year for my little business. Growth is good but it's also scary. A few weeks ago I was working on something that had fantastic potential but which also scared the hell out of me. I was chatting with a friend and fellow career pioneer about it and was explaining that I seemed to be following a trajectory that was getting familiar: "*hand is level* Wow, okay, this is interesting, this is exciting *hand goes up* wait, what am I doing *hand starts coming down, like a rollercoaster* oh my god this is terrifying I have no idea what I'm doing I am going to bomb *hand crashes out* okay, wait, I think I got this, I just need to rely on my experience and believe in myself *hand starts coming back up*" You get the idea. So imagine my delight when I discovered a much more eloquent visual version of this insane journey of throwing yourself out there:

Image from john.do.

There's nothing quite so reassuring as knowing you're not alone, especially when what you're doing is new to you.

That visual reminded me of another one. I don't know who drew this, but I think of it often, whether in work or in rowing or in my personal life.

These are things I'm reflecting on as we begin a new year. Wishing you good fortune, fun adventures, just enough challenge and fear, and the guts to see it all through.

If you've watched any amount of TV lately and not fast-forwarded through all the commercials, you've likely seen some of these State Farm TV spots. They've ingeniously written ad scripts where the meaning changes completely depending on how the lines are delivered by the actors. The scripts & delivery serve to illustrate both the good and bad in life, and how State Farm has what you need in both cases. Or as they put it, "State Farm knows that for every one of those moments, there's one of these moments."

This is some seriously brilliant copywriting. As any copywriter knows, the smallest, punchiest lines can be the most difficult to write, and when I watch these ads I often imagine the struggle. I've no idea whether this is remotely accurate, but I picture a round table of writers yanking their hair out as they test lines in various voices until they all start to feel like they're going crazy. These are the kind of lines that I imagine were tested out on family, friends, and around the water cooler. "But if they say it like this does it sound more exasperated?" "Would a thief say this? Is this believable? What if he says it like this?"

I'm curious about the process here. If it were me, I think I'd start by writing the 'good' side of the ad first, then test it out in the 'uh oh' voice. The comedic element might be more natural that way, exactly as it's delivered in the videos. How would you approach it?

Video descriptions on YouTube continue to perfectly capture both the individual videos, and the services offered.

1) "State Farm is always there, with car insurance, for when things go wrong. But also here with car loans, to help life go right."

2) "State Farm is always there, with renters insurance, for when things go wrong. But also here, with a rewards credit card, to help life go right."

3) "State Farm is always there, with car insurance, for when things go wrong. But also here with car loans, to help life go right."

Had such a cool morning seeing Chelsea Clinton talk about wildlife, conservation, and her new book, Don’t Let Them Disappear. I’m so impressed with her understanding of the complexities of conservation, and the important roles that zoos play in protecting species. Check out this great book for the little animal lovers in your life. 🦈
PS—Her 4-year-old daughter is obsessed with sharks. She asked why there weren’t more sharks in the book, and was told that different people like different things, and not everyone loves sharks as much as she does. She replied, “Well, they should.” She was told that then that was her job, to get other people to love and care about sharks, and tell their stories. I mean like does Chelsea Clinton want a job bc I’m feeling a little threatened 🐘🦏🦍🦒🦛🦓🦈🦈🦈 #endextinction #dontletthemdisappear #chelseaclinton #sandiegozoo

I like to *Austin Powers’ air quotes* “help” at Learn To Row because hey, free sunset boat ride #teamplayer #zlac